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Cocaine use linked to higher suicide risk?

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Respected writer links cocaine and suicide

Cocaine use linked to higher suicide Cocaine users are at a higher risk of taking their own lives than non-drug users, according to Andrew M Brown in an article for the Telegraph.

The writer, who specialises in the influence of addiction and substance abuse on culture and celebrities, asserts that cocaine also places users at a higher risk of suicide than any other illegal drug.

Mr Brown states: "Cocaine users experience a rapid high […] then a sharp plummeting of the mood.

"This see-saw, or roller-coaster, effect accounts for the drug’s 'reinforcing' property - i.e. the need to take another dose - [… and] it's probably because of this that cocaine use is associated with a higher incidence of suicide than other drugs of abuse, with the exception of alcohol."

He adds that dependent cocaine users can also experience other disturbing mental and emotional health issues as a result of using the substance, including paranoia and psychosis. And, he claims, it "almost inevitably leads to depression".

The evidence

The Office of National Statistics (ONS) recently revealed that the number of drug users dying as a result of their addiction has risen by 20 per cent in the last year, representing an eight-year peak for cocaine deaths.

While the figures cannot reveal what percentage of the 235 recorded deaths in England and Wales were a result of a user's desire to take their own lives as opposed to accidental overdose, certainly they make for disturbing reading, according to Liberal Democrat health spokesman Norman Lamb.

He told the Telegraph: "Ministers must make sure that schools and public services work together to make sure that the message gets out that drugs kill."

Martin Barnes, chief executive of DrugScope, told the same newspaper: "The steady rise in deaths linked with cocaine use underlines the drug's harms at a time when use of the drug is again increasing, particularly among 16 to 24-year-olds."

Who is most at risk?

While the link between cocaine and drug-related death has long been established by statistics such as those from the ONS, the reasons behind such behaviour require further investigation, according to Doctor Alec Roy, MD.

In 2001 he authored a study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry, entitled Characteristics of Cocaine-Dependent Patients Who Attempt Suicide, and attempted to define the personality types of cocaine users most at risk of suicide in later life.

In the introduction to the research, he states: "Although suicidal behaviour is frequent among cocaine-dependent patients, it has been little studied."

For his research, Dr Roy studied the characteristics of 84 cocaine-addicted persons who had attempted to take their own lives and compared them with 130 people with cocaine abuse issues who had never attempted suicide.

He concluded that females who were cocaine-dependent were at a higher risk of deliberate self-harm than males, while those with a family history of suicidal behaviour, had experienced childhood trauma or had other substance abuse issues were also at a higher risk of suicide.

A mother's story

One mother who knows only too well of the devastating link between cocaine and suicide is Carol Highton from Runcorn, Cheshire.

Three years ago Ms Highton lost her young footballer son Brian Shields to suicide after his life spiralled out of control due to cocaine addiction, according to the Manchester Evening News.

In an interview with the newspaper at the time, Ms Highton said: "I want to make sure it doesn't destroy another family's life.

"Brian was just a normal lad. He was clever. He passed his A-levels and wanted to go to university to study psychology."

While the influence of the drug on Brian's decision to take his own life can never be fully known, his mother believes the financial pressure of his dependency was certainly largely to blame for his decision to end his own life.

She told the Manchester Evening News that Brian had taken out loans at interest rates of up to 90 per cent in order to fund his addiction, which he had no hope of ever being able to repay.

Ms Highton said: "It was only after his death that I discovered what had been going on. I realised how desperate he must have been faced with the drug dealers wanting his money."

A growing problem?

Despite the connections that have been made between suicide and cocaine addiction, it seems use of the drug is on the rise in the UK, according to recent statistics from the British Crime Survey.

The Survey claims the number of working-age adults using cocaine has almost hit the one million mark, representing a 12-year high in the drug's popularity among UK residents.

The figures also reveal that the majority of cocaine users are aged between 16 and 24, with this age category accounting for almost 50 per cent of abusers of the substance.

Responding to the statistics, shadow home secretary Chris Grayling told the Telegraph: "These figures are alarming […] and it's a particular concern that they are now rising so fast."

If you are experiencing suicidal thoughts or emotional distress, you can call Samaritans for support 24 hours on 08457 90 90 90 (UK) and 1850 60 90 90 (ROI), or email at jo@samaritans.org, or face to face - visit http://www.samaritans.org/ for your nearest branch.